Del tha Funky Homosapien

In the 90s he was Ice Cube’s whackedout
cousin, cranking out curveball rap
that was the jungle gym to N.W.A’s roughhouse.
After a psilocybin-and-videogames
induced hiatus, he gifted hip-hop with the
formation of his Oakland based funk-rap
group Hieroglyphics. A few years later he
joined forces with kitsch producer Dan the
Automator and DJ Kid Koala to churn out
the futuristic cult classic “Deltron 3030.”

A year after that, his verses on “Clint Eastwood”
would help Damon Albarn bring
his virtual band Gorillaz into the limelight.
He’s been called Del, D, Diesel, Dr. Bombay,
Deltron 0, and Del Diablo Diabolique
and his music has been featured in countless
skate and snowboard movies and in
just about every Tony Hawk video game.
Whether you know it or not, you’ve heard
Del tha Funkee Homosapien, but just in
case you don’t remember, “11th Hour”
should serve as a fine reintroduction.
“Some people say that I’m uh… how
should I phrase it… a little out of the spectrum,”
Del says on final track “Funky Homosapien.”

And it’s true: Del’s bobble-head
rap is a style really without equal in the hip
hop world. This might partly be due to the
fact that nobody else in the game could
really pull off starting one of their tracks
with a vocal interpretation of themselves
taking a shit (and then reminding themselves
to wash their hands), but more likely
it’s that nobody else could do it quite so
naturally. Incorporating laughs into his
music isn’t really hard for Del. His unique
flow and quirky rhymes lend themselves
perfectly to lyrical concepts that’ll make
you chuckle while simultaneously helping
to “show you the ill view” that defines his
world.

But leading up to his first solo album in
eight years, it wasn’t clear which Del would
show up—the hazy cool Deltron 0 of recent
years, or the funky D of old. After his
recent announcement that the new album
would be released through underground
label Definitive Jux rather than home label
Heiro Imperium, it seemed as if the
new sound was here to stay. Instead, “11th
Hour” sees “the respawn of the predawn,”
bringing back the funk samples and strange
verses that defined Del’s early career. While
it’s refreshing to know that Del hasn’t lost
the style that helped him carve out his
place in the rap world, it’s hard to listen to
“11th Hour” without realizing that it isn’t
Del’s critically acclaimed debut“I Wish
My Brother George Was Here.”

Still, the album does have some things
that earlier Del albums didn’t—most
notably, a sense of perspective. While he
might not exactly be an elder statesman in
the vein of Nas or Rakim, his lead single
“Bubble Pop” serves as a worthy critique
of rap culture today. Its mock-lament of
the “deflation” of today’s hip-hop “helium
heads” resonates powerfully over a
doughy beat layered beneath the sampled
bells of Bob James’s “Take me to the Mardi
Gras.” Del seems more than happy to let
the flash-in-the-pan artists “stroll down
the golden road [even though] you know
they’ll hate it when they find out the bricks
is golden plated.”

But while the syrupy flutes of “Last
Hurrah” and the Sega Genesis synth- and
slap-bass of “I’ll Tell You” bring a unique
musical element to the table, the production
values of “11th Hour” will leave modern
hip-hop heads wanting more. Here’s
where a more long term pursuit of the Deltron
route seems like the better option for
the Funky Homosapien. Producing your
own beats within the style that has defined
you may seem to make the most sense
artistically, but for Del it seems to detract
from the appeal of his overall sound; the
work of a true producer is sorely missed.
While funk may be the world in which
he lives, acid rap is the world in which he
best creates. But don’t despair: things are
looking up for the return of Deltron 0
with the release of “Deltron: Event II” right
around the corner.

That said, “11th Hour”
is still a solid album and one that’s worth a
listen. After eight years of absence from the
solo scene, a return that truly lived up to all
the anticipation would be hard to muster,
but Del deserves respect. His lyrics are as
unique as ever—plus, his hands are clean.